Putting A New Nutritional Tool To WorkNovember 7, 2011 The word is out: Nutrition is a new option for managing cats with hyperthyroidism. Limiting dietary iodine induces euthyroidism in cats that have naturally occurring hyperthyroidism, according to studies by Hill’s Pet Nutrition Inc. of Topeka, Kan. Hill’s determined that if the iodine content can be kept below 0.32 ppm, hyperthyroidism in cats can be controlled through nutritional therapy alone. Hill’s released its Prescription Diet y/d Feline Thyroid Health in dry and wet formulations in October. Hill’s describes the food as a daily, low-iodine nutrition solution designed to manage hyperthyroidism in cats, and says it is clinically proven to improve thyroid health in three weeks. The next step is incorporating this new option into the veterinary practice. First Things First: Diagnosis “Fortunately, diagnosing [feline] hyperthyroidism is pretty easy,” said David Bruyette, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, medical director at VCA West Los Angeles Animal Hospital. Hill’s invited Dr. Bruyette to use the pet food with some of his patients before the new product’s launch. “Most veterinarians now are screening older cats by measuring T4, the major thyroid hormone,” he said. “The vast majority of cats—about 93+ percent—that are hyperthyroid will have a high total …
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What’s Beyond For Baby Boomers And The HAB?November 3, 2011 As a baby boomer, I officially enter my senior years when I turn 65 on Nov. 5. My husband, Ira Lifland, who is two months younger than I, follows in January. We are glad to be eligible for Medicare and thankful to be able to save a lot of money on our health insurance premiums, which were more than $30,000 last year. Even though we are healthy, our premiums have been upped annually, paralleling the profits of our carrier. Going on Medicare will be a raise for us. Our strategy is to forgo Social Security payments until we turn 70 so we receive more in the long run if we survive past 80. Ira always envied me for loving what I do. This profession is wonderful, and I enjoy working our concierge referral practices. Animal Oncology Consultation Service and Pawspice is one. Carreen Lynch, RVT, is my Pawspice partner. Pawspice offers palliative care and gentler standard care for cancer patients. It transitions into hospice as the patient’s quality of life declines or if death is expected soon. Carreen has worked with me for most of the past 25 or so years. She has read my …
What To Say Back When Money TalksNovember 2, 2011It is a scene that’s all too familiar. We know what needs to be done for a pet’s health, but the client cannot afford the care. They come to us for help, but we are stopped short by the tough choices they have regarding how much they can afford. Some people go much further than we’d imagine, even spending kids’ college funds and mortgaging the house to save their pets from extreme illness or injury. But we’ve also seen people who think the veterinary profession should provide care even when they can’t pay for it. When we have to explain that the pet owner is responsible for funding the pet’s treatment, they often question our emotional attachment to animals in general, or accuse us of letting a pet die. This is when veterinary medicine is the toughest, when we are made to feel responsible for their inability to pay. What do we do when faced with this situation? Which of several options we use will depend on the situation and the client’s frame of mind. The Humorous Approach Sometimes, particularly with clients who comment on the price but don’t seem to be disappointed or angered by the total, it can …
Are our patients being sold out by Big Pharma?November 2, 2011Only a fraction of the drugs we veterinary professionals use on our patients are actually approved for use in veterinary settings.
Technology Brings Stem-Cell Therapy In-HouseNovember 2, 2011 Stem-cell therapy for the treatment of joint diseases in animals, particularly dogs, cats and horses, has been available in the U.S. for a number of years. Today, second-generation technology is enabling more veterinarians to take advantage of this modality by making the investment less expensive and improving the process and delivery. Proponents say stem cells harvested from adipose tissue accelerate the healing of muscles and joints in adult animals suffering from osteoarthritis, hip dysplasia, ligament and cartilage injuries and other degenerative joint diseases. Researchers have found that “activating” stem cells before returning them to the animal’s body enhances the healing of these musculoskeletal problems. “This technology can be adapted for any animal, be it a dog, horse, cat or an exotic,” said Mike Hutchinson, DVM, owner of Animal General of Cranberry, near Pittsburgh. “We take that individual’s fat, process it and activate the stem cells. Then, we put them back into the same animal. We are using the animal’s own repair system, the adult stem cells.” Because it is an autologous procedure, he said, it is safe and effective. MediVet America of Nicholasville, Ky., is the company that sells the in-clinic equipment, adipose stem …
The $10,000 DogNovember 1, 2011 When Christine Gowen took her 7-year-old Labrador retriever, Shelby, to the veterinarian for a cough in January 2010, she could not have been less prepared for the eventual outcome. After an initial diagnosis of kennel cough, a few days on medication and several follow-up calls to the veterinary hospital, alarm bells started going off all the way around. Gowen, an employee of Veterinary Pet Insurance Co. (VPI) in Brea, Calif., has seen many examples of veterinary medical issues that were more serious than they originally appeared, so she and her family were concerned. The veterinarian took some radiographs, and the journey to the $10,000 medical bill began. Shelby presented with no history of trauma or cardiac/respiratory disease, had not been to the dog park, boarding kennel or groomer recently, and appeared to have a normal appetite and energy level. Her owner indicated that she was breathing oddly, taking deep, slow breaths, and was coughing occasionally. The exam was relatively unremarkable, although her respiratory rate and heart rate were elevated at 28 and 90, respectively. Diagnosis Shelby was re-presented on emergency a week later. She was in obvious respiratory distress, was tachypneic and had decreased …
Lavage Or Drug—What’s The Right Treatment?November 1, 2011 When a horse or companion animal becomes sick or lame, the owner turns to his trusted veterinarian for a diagnosis and the best proven treatment to make his animal better. However, what is prescribed might not always be the best option, as when a lavage solution is injected systemically. So do you treat with an FDA-approved drug, a generic drug, a medical device or a compounded product? In considering this question, Jeffrey Berk, VMD, a veterinarian at Equine Medical Associates in Lexington, Ky., says two things need to be considered very carefully. “You need to consider the safety of the patient and the liability or legal issues regarding the use of those products,” says Dr. Berk, a member of the Executive Committee of the American Association of Equine Practitioners. FDA-Approved Products “It’s important for veterinarians to understand that they are not guaranteed the same level of quality, i.e. potency and purity, that you would be with an FDA-approved product,” Berk says. “And if there is a therapeutic failure, the veterinarian has more legal exposure when treating with medical devices or compounds than when he treats with FDA-approved products.” Some experts estimate it takes …
Finding Software’s Hidden GemsOctober 31, 2011 Veterinarians would pay closer attention during practice management software training if they realized how much revenue they could gain and how much time they would save. Software companies offer on-site, on-phone and online training with the purchase and installation of software, but many clinic staffers never quite get to the “hidden gems” that can grow revenue and save time. “Especially in this economy, utilizing your software to the fullest is the key to helping your practice grow,” says Stephen McAllister, president of McAllister Software Systems of Piedmont, Mo., the company behind AVImark veterinary practice management software. Information searches, for example, can target patients for specific marketing. “Track who’s coming in regularly and who’s not,” McAllister says. “Or target certain breeds or ages of pets and develop certain programs for groups of clients. That’s captured revenue.” Some software lets practitioners look at how the clinic discounts services and tracks inventory. Integrating the software to track procedures for surgery, lab and radiography, along with reference labs and specialty hospitals, prevents missed charges. Software systems present a variety of communications aids, from educational handouts to e-mail reminders to direct mail. Owner compliance translates into increased revenue. “Through …
Building Bonds To Improve Patient CareOctober 27, 2011 If there is one thing we can all agree on, it is that the ability to build strong relationships with clients and their pets is one of the most defining characteristics of a successful veterinary practice. It’s not rocket science—we live and breathe the importance of this bond. We train our staff to master it, keep our eyes and ears open for new ways to enhance it, and recognize that a practice’s greatest strength can be found in how well it becomes an integral third party in the relationship between owners and their pets. Similarly, could there potentially be additional benefit for a practice that chooses to emphasize building a bonding between individual veterinarians and clients? According to the 2011 Bayer Study, the answer is a “yes,” and the data from the study actually point to this one-to-one relationship between a practitioner and client as a key driver of increased visits. The study found that practices that encourage clients to bring their pets to the same veterinarian for every visit are the same practices that experience increased compliance and acceptance of recommended treatment protocols. It appears that the apparent disconnect between what veterinarians think they are …
Why We Hate Online ReviewsOctober 27, 2011 Here’s a not-very-well-kept secret: Most of us detest online reviews. Why? Well, isn’t it obvious? We know that plenty of people now use them almost exclusively to find their new pets’ healthcare provider (us). So we can’t ignore them. We’re compelled to read them and make sure they say only good things about us—for the sake of our livelihood (never mind our egos). As if it weren’t enough to have one more task to manage, now we’re told by practice management gurus (you know who they are) that we’re supposed to assign a staff member to manage these reviews and sign up for Google alerts to make sure our reputations are squeaky-clean. So it is that our already-stretched resources must be allocated in this direction—stressfully. We know how angst-provoking reading the reviews can be. She said what about me? After all that awesome work I did on her cat? Which, of course, only makes you want to furiously check the timing on your PLIT policy. And invariably, also makes for one downer of a day. Sure, everyone knows a disgruntled client is a hundred times more likely to leave a negative review than a perennially …
